Why Projects Fail Lack of Accountability

Why Projects Fail: Lack of Accountability https://blog.kintone.com/business-with-heart/blog/why-projects-fail-acco...
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Wh Projects
Fail: Lack of
Accountabilit
Jun 9, 2020 | b Euna Kim
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We've covered how poor communication can kill a project, but unclear expectations and roles
can cause just as man issues. Accountabilit starts with clearl de�ning project objectives and
ensuring team members know who is responsible for what. But as scope and roles change, it
becomes even more crucial to address accountabilit earl on and throughout a project.
Here are some accountabilit concepts that can determine the success of our projects:
Responsibilit vs. Accountabilit

Before going an further, we need to make a
distinction of terms: "responsibilit" versus
"accountabilit." These terms are often mistaken for
being one and the same, but knowing the di�erence
between them can mean the di�erence between a
successful project and a failed one.
For our purposes, a responsible team member can

be de�ned as an individual that has been assigned a
task. Responsibilit can be shared. Meanwhile, an
accountable team member is ultimatel
answerable for the activit or decision, and onl one accountable person can be assigned to an
action. This is an important distinction because people with responsibilit to complete tasks are
quite often not the ones accountable for the overall success of those tasks.
Oftentimes, a project manager will depend on a number of large and disparate teams to complete
tasks at particular deadlines. Unfortunatel, responsibilit and accountabilit are not alwas linked.
In those cases, team members with a lot of responsibilit, but not much accountabilit might step
aside and let the hammer fall elsewhere.
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This is not to sa
performance that those
and tra�c team members
on our website. areinformation
We also share stepping about
aside out of laziness or maliciousness.
Ver frequentl it comes down to the fact that team members have a multitude of responsibilities
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competing for their time. The problem is that if enough people step aside, the gap becomes real,
the project objective falls through, and the blame game begins.
2 of 10 13/05/2022 09:00
To build accountabilit before work on the project even begins, it's important to not onl be clear
on tasks and who the're assigned to, but also the context of how the overall project ties to larger
team goals. Accountabilit also means there should be check-ins to assess progress and
performance. Acknowledging successes and areas that could use improvement are a ke wa to
keep our team accountable and build a culture of continuous improvement.
READ ALO: Wh You hould tart Using The Kaizen Method To Achieve Your Most
Challenging Goals
If ou are a project manager, make sure to not onl de�ne responsibilities but also understand the
structure of accountabilit within the project. Alwas ask ourself upfront, "Is there someone
accountable for this task in the project?" If the answer isn't es, then for all intents and purposes it
is ou until ou address that gap.
What Did You Expect?

Communication is an important aspect of creating
accountabilit with our team, and it starts with
setting and managing expectations.
Whether ou're an individual contributor or a

manager, it is vital to manage expectations so that
there are few mismatches or misunderstandings
regarding what our responsibilities are and how
ou perform against those responsibilities. The same
can be said about a project manager and the
expectations of executives or project stakeholders.
As this article from Team Gantt puts it, "If the expect a unicorn, it's our fault."
imilar to a project manager working with a team, avoiding mismatches and misunderstandings is
just as important to our project success, but it's up to ou to set and voice our expectations with
accountabilit in mind.
During kick-o� meetings, alwas dig deeper if a team member sas "let's ____" or "we'll ____." It's
not alwas necessar (or correct) to make that person accountable for the tasks that the mention.
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However, for uses
This website the sake oftoaccountabilit,
cookies make sure
enhance user experience and that called out tasks will have a proper owner
to analze
who will be the
performance andone toon
tra�c report on theWestatus
our website. of that
also share task going
information aboutforward. If "let's" and "we'll" slip
through without agreement on who the owner is, the project will be set up so that
Accept the team is
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responsible, but no one is accountable should it fall through.
It is important to note that this is not intended to be a tool for issuing blame. In fact it is meant to
3 of 10 13/05/2022 09:00
serve as a tactic for avoiding blame that might come from misunderstandings later on about who
was to take on the task.
Final Thoughts
In an ideal world, each project is like a cheer routine where a team of cheerleaders hoists up one
member into the air and catches them on their wa down. Ever team member is invested because
the have a relationship with the falling cheerleader and their success depends on their collective
e�ort in bringing their fellow down safel. If ou can bring about that same investment and
motivation in our project team, ou will have the best chance of success.
Found this article useful? Download the full Wh Projects Fail eBook for free here.
About the Author

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performance
Euna Kim and tra�c on our website. We also share information about
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partners.
Euna Privac Polic
is a Content Marketing pecialist at Kintone. he holds a BA in English from the Universit of
Michigan and has a thing for words, food, and travel.
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PRODUCTIVITY PRODUCTIVITY PRODUCTIVITY
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“Learn from the o. Much. Business Imagine this: ou’re a
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enough to make them in an increasingl on a Frida, and
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Why Projects Fail: Lack of Accountability https://blog.kintone.com/business-with-heart/blog/why-projects-fail-acco...

Business with Heart <3

TIP AND TRICK

Responsibilit vs. Accountabilit

For our purposes, a responsible team member can

What Did You Expect?

Whether ou're an individual contributor or a

About the Author

protegido por reCAPTCHA

Do Not Sell My Info

Do Not Sell My Info

WORKPLACE WORKPLACE WORKPLACE

The Top Three The Is Work�ow

Tr Kintone For Free!

Try Kintone for free Schedule a Live Demo

performance and tra�c on our website. We also share information about

Terms of Use Privacy Policy

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© 2022 Kintone Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

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